Three Cognitive Biases That Influence Decision Making

A former home improvement store clerk based in North Carolina, Steven Dasho studied at North Shore Community College and Asheville Bunville Technical Community College. During his time as a student, Steven Dasho has developed an interest in psychology.

In psychology, the term “cognitive bias” refers to often-unconscious thought processes that cause people to reach questionable conclusions. Here are three of the most common cognitive biases you may encounter.

Stereotyping - Everyone has heard of stereotyping, or the tendency to ascribe certain characteristics to a person or group based on commonly held beliefs. Although stereotyping is generally viewed as an unproductive behavior in today’s society, it helps us quickly identify others as friends or enemies, which may have served an important purpose earlier in human history.

Conservatism bias - When presented with new information about something, people tend to favor prior evidence regardless of the objective merit of the new evidence. As such, new theories about the world are often slow to take hold.

Placebo effect - When people believe that something has an effect on them, that effect is more likely to be experienced. Most commonly applied in medicine, the placebo effect can result in measurable improvements in patients who are given nothing more than a sugar pill, which they believe is medicine.

Tips for Writing Exciting Rap Lyrics

Steven Dasho, a student and experienced customer service professional, enjoys a variety of active and musical hobbies. A fan of freestyle rap, Steven Dasho writes his own lyrics.

Good rap music combines solid rhythm with inventive lyrics and an engaging rhyme pattern. The rap lyricist needs to understand how all of these elements fit together.

The broad structure of a rap involves an intro, an “outro” or conclusion, and a verse-chorus pattern. The chorus carries the message and is thus the most important section of lyrics, while the verse adds richness to the content.

Many rap lyricists begin by crafting the chorus as a solid foundation. Experienced rap lyricists come to this process with an emphasis on authenticity and on evoking an emotional response from the audience. That response can range from tears or laughter to righteous anger, depending on the lyricist's intent.

The lyricist must think about the message as well as the effect of rhymes and word choice. Even the simplest raps typically include rhymes at the end of sequential lines, while more complex patterns of lyrics feature rhymes that are inside the line or multi-syllabic. The multi-syllabic rhyme tends to be the most advanced form.

As lyricists advance in skill, they can include more complex rhyme schemes as well as literary devices. Like the writer of prose or non-rap poetry, a rap lyricist who uses metaphors, similes, and other tools can generate more interest on the part of the listener.